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QUEEN CREEK, AZ — A family has filed a lawsuit against an East Valley gym, alleging multiple claims, including negligence, that stems from an August incident when a teen was attempting a round-off back tuck and ended up severely injured.
The complaint names multiple allegations, including negligence and a delay in emergency response following an incident that left a teen severely injured.
The 17-year-old and her mom sat down with ABC15, along with her attorney, Thomas Hasty with Morgan & Morgan.
"The change, the new normal, it's scary," said mother Karen Stevens.
Her daughter, Analysia Spencer-Stevens, has been involved in gymnastics and cheerleading for about a decade. Karen said they had been attending USA Youth Fitness Center locally for about four years.
But now, Analysia, or Ana as her loved ones call her, now sits in a wheelchair. The teen was recently released from the hospital after a three-month stay.
The family, and a recently filed lawsuit, said Ana was injured in August after working her way slowly back to gymnastics. The teen's family said she was recovering from a previous injury stemming from a car accident.
"Ana is an incomplete quadriplegic," said Karen.
An incomplete spinal cord injury is described by the Cleveland Clinic as having "that the quadriplegia blocks some — but not all — signals from getting through. That means a person might still have some ability to move."
She told ABC15 that her daughter now needs help doing daily tasks.
The day of the incident started out normally, according to Ana.
"Right before I left, I wanted to get my skill recorded, just to set in stone what I had worked on that day," said Ana.
The recently filed lawsuit said the teen was attending class at the center's Queen Creek location.
"I asked for a spot," said Ana. "I got told that, 'I was going to be fine.' And I went to go do my pass, failed, under-rotated, landed on my head, my neck."
The family's lawsuit alleges Ana asked for a spotting assist, but was told she would be fine.
ABC15 has not independently verified what happened during the class.
Ana said that after the incident, a coach came over to her.
"He sat next to me, asked me if I was okay," said Ana. "He said that we were going to sit there and wait to see if I was going to regain feeling."
Ultimately, Ana was taken to the hospital.
The family said she was diagnosed with a spinal injury.
"I was terrified," said Karen. "At one point, I thought I was gonna lose her, because within 24 hours they had her intubated."
Multiple parties are named in the lawsuit, including a coach and the owners of the gym.
The family's attorney said it's a failure of safety protocols.
"It is safety first," said Hasty. "So for the coach to say, no, I have confidence in you. We're just going to record this instead of support her; that is a massive failure as a coach and as a human being."
ABC15 reached out to every defendant listed, including the gym, but has not received any comment.
There have been no legal responses filed on behalf of any of the defendants.
ABC15 also sent an email to USA Gymnastics, because the center's Gilbert location is listed as a "member club."
The message asked for a statement from the gym and USAG and included a question about the type of waivers or paperwork athletes sign.
ABC15 did receive the following response from a USAG representative:
“Thank you for reaching out. We appreciate the seriousness of this case. As it is ongoing, we cannot offer further comment."
"When the jury hears the waiver, the facts of this case, we are confident they are not going to enforce a waiver here," said Hasty.
As the legal battle begins, Ana is focusing on her faith and the fight that got her here.
"If you have faith and hope in yourself, you'll go far," said Ana.
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